Websites · 6 min read
Tradespeople: your website has about a minute to win the call
The five things that get the phone ringing, and the five that quietly lose it.
The short answer
Good websites for tradespeople put the trade and the towns you cover in the headline, a tappable phone number on every page, real photos of your own finished jobs, a page per service, and proof of insurance and qualifications. Most enquiries are decided on a phone screen in under a minute, so everything else is secondary.
By Raja Wahab, Co-founder, Fixby Studios · Published · Updated · 6 min read
How a customer actually uses a tradesperson's website
They search on a phone, usually in a hurry. They open two or three sites, glance to check you do the job and cover their area, look for something that proves you're real, then tap to call. That whole sequence takes under a minute, so websites for tradespeople have to be built for that minute rather than for a slow read.
This is as true in Huddersfield as it is in Halifax, Brighouse or Dewsbury. The searcher doesn't care where your office is — they care whether you turn up, do good work, and pick up the phone.
Gets the call
- — Tappable number in the header
- — Real photos of your own jobs
- — Trade and towns in the headline
Loses the call
- — Contact form, no number
- — Stock photos, no proof
- — No towns you cover mentioned
The five things that get the call
- A headline that states the trade and the patch: "Roofing in Huddersfield, Brighouse and Halifax".
- A tappable number in the header on every page, plus WhatsApp if that's how customers already reach you.
- Ten or more photos of your own finished work — not stock. Before-and-after pairs are the strongest.
- A page per service, because "flat roofs" and "emergency repairs" are different searches with different customers.
- Insurance, qualifications and accreditations stated plainly. This is what makes a stranger trust you with a deposit.
The five things that lose it
- A contact form as the only way to reach you, with no number in sight.
- No mention of the towns you actually cover.
- A gallery that takes ten seconds to load on mobile data.
- A quote form asking twelve questions before you've earned the enquiry.
- A site that clearly hasn't changed since 2019, so the customer can't tell if you're still trading.
“Most tradespeople's enquiries are won or lost on a phone in under a minute.”
Do you need a website if you're already busy from word of mouth?
Word of mouth still ends in a search. A friend recommends you, but the customer types your name or your trade into Google before they call, just to check you're legitimate and still going. Having nothing to find costs you jobs that were already recommended to you, and it caps how far you can grow beyond your existing circle.
What it costs to fix this
At Fixby Studios, a straightforward tradesperson's site is available on our monthly plans with no upfront build fee (see our monthly plans at /plans) — whether you want the basics, separate pages per service for stronger local reach, or quote forms and booking tools. One extra job most months covers it.
Websites and social media, working together
Plenty of tradespeople already post finished jobs on Instagram. That's valuable for trust, but it doesn't help someone searching Google for a tradesperson near them.
Get a website built for the phone call
If you want a straight answer on what your trade's site should include and what it would cost, email info@fixbystudios.co.uk or call 07737 067552. We'll tell you plainly what you need and what you don't.
Your questions
- Do tradespeople really need a website if they're on Facebook and Instagram?
- Social media is great for showing work to people who already follow you, but it doesn't appear when someone searches Google for a tradesperson in their town. A website covers that gap.
- How many pages should a tradesperson's website have?
- Usually a homepage, a page per main service, an about/trust page covering insurance and qualifications, and a contact page. More pages mean more chances to be found for specific searches.
- What's the single biggest mistake on trade websites?
- Burying the phone number, or leaving it out of the header entirely. Most visitors are on a phone and want to tap and call, not fill in a form.
- How much does a website for a tradesperson cost?
- At Fixby Studios, our websites are available on monthly plans with no upfront build fee (see our monthly plans at /plans), from a basic site to one with quote forms and extra features. Costs elsewhere vary, but a fixed, itemised quote is normal to expect.
Raja Wahab is co-founder of Fixby Studios, a Huddersfield studio building websites, SEO, social media and business software for small, owner-managed businesses across West Yorkshire.
Next step
Let's get your business seen.
A free plan for your website: pages, booking and what to fix first.
Fixby Studios builds websites, runs SEO and manages social media for small businesses across Huddersfield and West Yorkshire. Web design in Huddersfield
Prefer to talk it through? Contact Fixby Studios, email info@fixbystudios.co.uk or call 07737 067552.
